#korsou

Sunset in Charo 26th of September.

Salsa Records from Curaçao

-What were the discussions within and outside the circles of advisors/think tank/ curators when the decision was made to let the ‘king’ inaugurate the slavery exhibition? How come ‘nobody’ in the netherlands thought it was important to mobilize/organize raise criticism against the dutch ‘king’ presence at the rijksmuseum exhibition of slavery?

 Why havent people seen anti-dutch monarchy, anti-colonial, reparatory justice statements, organized media discussions, from movements, organizations, institutions, artists, politicians, intelligentsia to raise awareness, protest, the royal family and hold them accountable for their genocidial wealth thievery?

Is it that the people in/directly involved understand that spitting truth to the ‘royal’ powers that be will have far reaching repercussions? Could it be that there was no option at all and the ‘king’ forced himself into the exhibition as a strategy to pacify Black fury in NL? If so how come he could arrive and walk around in the museum and leave without any sign of protest in the streets or public discourse in the media? There was no threat, no tension.

People seem to forgot the 2001 Beatrix dehumanization fiasco at the opening of the slavery monument when the Caribbean and African diapora community were violently excluded to attend the inauguration because ‘queen’ Beatrix had to be protected during her presence.

How is it possible that 99% of the media articles on the exhibition international and national did not speak about the link between the royal family and dutch slavery, reparations and the current colonization of the Caribbean?

Thirzo Martha and David Blade were picked to negotiate artful expressions on the slavery exhibition? Why only them when they have anti-blackness challenges? How come no artists from the Caribbean did not get a ‘chance’? The dutch coloniality of their art talents was made very clear with the absence of imaginations of art and reparations and the enslavement wealth theft of the royal dutch family.

What was the financial budget of the rijksmuseum slavery exhibition organizers and how much has been invested into Black people? Interior design, educational material, design educational booklet, public relations, book publisher, book, editing, translating, media work, moderating, academic works.

This is home for me.